It's Just Love (12 page)

He was silent for a long moment. “I’d probably kill myself,
but I’d like to try.” His quiet tone held a longing that raced straight to her
heart. And also found the guilt again. Why was she making dates with a man who
had a committed relationship? Yet, there was something between them she
couldn’t deny.
Dammit!

They began to walk, side by side, just out of the reach of
the shimmering waves. Each time the breakers crashed and rolled to their feet,
the foam glowed, luminescent white in the moonlight. She kept her gaze fixed on
the gorgeous phenomenon and tried to tug her thoughts away from the urge to
move closer to Gage, to touch him.

He took her hand, lacing their fingers together, and they
continued along, their feet leaving dents in the sand that would remain until
the tide rose enough to wash them away. No more permanence than their time
together.

After tomorrow, they’d appear on the show again, but that
would be the final time she’d see him. He wouldn’t come to surf, and she
wouldn’t remind him of the invitation. He’d go on with his life, his successful
career as a writer and relationship therapist, and she’d go on with hers. He
would marry Miss Perfect 10 and she’d find someone herself, in time. The idea
slowed her steps and their connected hands brought him to her pace.

Finally, he stopped and turned her toward him. His down
turned face in shadow, she could nonetheless see the purpose in his eyes when
he brought a hand up and stroked her cheek. She leaned into the touch, savoring
his cool palm against her skin.

No words passed between them, but the air was charged with
the tendrils of connection. His head dipped, and she rose onto her tiptoes to
meet him halfway. Thoughts fled as his lips came down on hers with a firm
pressure, his hands met at the small of her back, drawing her closer. She
linked her hands behind his neck.

Her eyes drifted closed and the world faded, becoming only
the warmth of his big, strong body against hers. When his tongue nudged her
lips, she parted them, welcoming him inside. Resolution faded, her nipples
peaked, and the solid bulge nudging her abdomen told her he shared her desire.

He stroked the inside of her mouth and drew her tongue into
play. His hands moved up until they held her under her armpits, his wrists
making contact with the sides of her breasts.
More, I want, I need more.

Gage sank to his knees then onto his back, taking her with
him, cushioning her body from the damp sand with his. She lay atop him, their
kisses never stopping, one following another like the waves rolling onto the
beach behind her. She savored each one, made a memory of it until finally she
lost her resolution.

She might never have the opportunity again, and she would
take it. She swam under the onslaught of his lips, his tongue, his warm mouth.
She might hate herself in the morning, but she wasn’t going to throw this gift
back in the Goddess’s face. Even if it was just for one day, or two, she would
grab what life and love had to offer.

Breaking away, she sucked in needed oxygen and pushed back
onto her knees. “Come on.” Standing, she reached for his hand and tugged. He
followed, seeming entranced.

“Where are we going?”

“My place.” She paced up the sand, pulling him along behind.
“We’re only a couple of blocks away.”

“But why?” Gage stumbled, and she waited while he got his
footing then began to move again.

“If you have to ask, you’re not as smart as I thought you
were.” Yes, she’d hate herself later, maybe.
Goddess, I know this is the
right thing to do, even if it makes no sense. But he’s the one I want to be the
first. After that…well, after that, I just don’t know. I’ll try and trust.

* * * *

I’m ensorcelled, but I don’t care.

Gage followed her, their clasped hands giving him connection
to the sand upon which he trod. Her kisses had been so sweet he’d forgotten the
chill in the air. The crashing of the waves had faded away until all he’d been
aware of was her heart’s frantic pounding against his chest. Coral’s invitation
had surprised him, but he wasn’t as dumb as all that. He did indeed know what
she meant and was no more capable of refusing her than giving up breathing.

He’d been attracted to her from the first moment he saw her,
and the compulsion to touch her, kiss her, stroke her had grown exponentially.
He’d never been so turned on by a woman, not even…no thinking about Geena now.
Nobody had made him feel this way, like his skin was paper-thin, his body so
sensitive to the breeze, the sand under his feet, the firm grip of her hand.

They left the beach behind and headed down a narrow street,
then another, their steps quickening. She opened her gate and dropped his hand
to fish in her giant purse for her keys. Fumbling with the lock, she finally
got the door open and they fell inside, kissing again already. He cupped her
breasts through the soft t-shirt, but she shoved him aside and backed into the
room.

Coral stumbled over a footstool halfway across the living
room, and he scooped her into his arms. “Which way?”

She pointed. He passed through a narrow hallway, turned half
sideways so her feet and head wouldn’t bump the walls, and waited for her to
turn the knob. Gage pushed the door open and found himself in her bedroom, a
cool, dark sanctuary where he could see the bed only from the bit of
streetlight shining through gauzy curtains.

The bed. A goal he could wrap his mind around. Get the woman
on the bed. Have the woman. What a caveman mentality, but it was all he had. He
wanted her and his cock, painfully stiff in his pants, agreed.

Gage laid her on the soft coverlet, her head on the pile of
pillows, then stood over her. What now? She lay looking up at him, his mermaid,
witch, surfer girl…and he froze.

Coral lifted her arms. “Gage?”

And he fell next to her, fully clothed but still barefoot.
Gage Middleton, stuffy guy, had walked barefoot on the sidewalks of Venice. He
could have stepped on glass or—

Coral reached for him. “I want you, please?”

She had to ask? Her hair spread across the pillows and her
face held shadows. She bit her lip, waiting…waiting for him. He stroked the
locks, silk under his touch, and then tugged her against him. Fully dressed.
Both of them. But he loathed to move away, even to remove their clothing. He
caressed her cheek, touched her eyelids, her short, straight nose, the outline
of her rosebud lips. Memorizing her.

As she sighed, he met her lips with his, taking her breath
into his body. Sweet. She allowed him to take the lead, and he found he
relished it, liked the feeling of strength that came with holding back when he
really wanted to plunge into her heat.

But she deserved better, and he would show her how precious
her gift of her body was to him. No promise of a future, just a moment in time,
and he wanted to remember every second. Her magic held him in thrall. The
thought caused a flicker of unease, but it flew away when she lapped softly at
his lips and he drew her tongue into his mouth, sucking on it, demonstrating
how he’d love to pleasure her in other places.

He reached for the hem of her t-shirt and lifted it, parting
from her mouth only long enough to get the top over her head. Then he took her
lips again, mastering her, taking her as high as he could.

He palmed her breasts through the lacey bra, stroking her
curves. With a flick of his forefinger he opened the front clasp and the cups
fell to the sides, freeing her to his questing hands. He rubbed the mounds,
teasing the hard peaks of her nipples.

Coral murmured something, pressing on his chest. He lifted
and looked down at her. “Condoms, in the bed table.” She blushed. “A joke gift
from a girlfriend.”

Okay, so she was prepared. Good, because he wasn’t. He
fumbled to open the drawer and found an economy-sized box. That must be the
joke. Gage tossed it on the bed. “I want to get to know you first.”

As he reached for her again, she tugged at his shirt, and he
let her pull the polo over his head. When she grabbed at the button on his slacks,
he stilled her hands and kissed the knuckles.

“Not yet, mermaid. Slow down, you first. I want to see what
you have for me under these sexy jeans.”

He flicked the button open and lowered her zipper, urging
her to lift her hips so he could pull them off. She lay in only a tiny pair of
panties, her breasts white where the bikini triangles had denied the sun.

Pressing another series of kisses across her lips, he moved
lower and licked slow circles around a nipple, pinching the other between his
forefinger and thumb.

She gasped and tangled her fingers in his hair. “Mmm, so
good.”

He sucked the hard peak into his mouth, continuing to lap at
it, but also bringing his teeth into play. Switching sides, he worked the other
nipple until she writhed under him.

He kissed his way down her flat abdomen, her soft skin
caressing his lips. As he neared her hips, he tugged her panties and untied the
little bows at the sides. “So smooth.” He stroked the satin skin of her mound.
“Open for me, baby.”

“I wear bikinis all the time. Waxing is a necessary evil.”
Her voice sounded different, low and seductive, and his libido leapt into high
gear.

Gage shifted down on the bed, moving between her legs. “It’s
working for you,” he said. “Skin like silk.”

She made a strangled sound, but subsided. Lifting one of her
thighs over his shoulder, he rested a forearm on the other and prepared to give
her all the pleasure he could. She was probably used to more experienced lovers
than he, but he would do his damndest to make their time together memorable.
That giant box of condoms bothered him. The idea that anyone had ever touched
her before him made him feel protective and a growl escaped his lips. He tried
to cover it with a cough, but she moved restlessly under him, and he feared
he’d freaked her out with his oddness.

Determined to gain her focus, he touched her pussy for the
first time, a single finger gliding through her slick folds.

She whimpered and he smiled. “I want to taste you.”

“Okay.”

Okay? He reached for her hand and found it clenched into a
fist. Smoothing it with his fingers, he wondered why she was so tense, but when
she didn’t say anything else, he became more determined to give her more
pleasure than any man ever could—or had.

Wrapping his arms around her hips, he brought his mouth to
her mound and blew. She arched toward him, and he took advantage and buried his
face in her pussy, exploring its silky petals with his tongue and lips. He’d
never had such a desire to do this before, always it had been part of his
“duty,” but with Coral, every twitch of a muscle, every encouraging murmur
rewarded him, made him want to give her more pleasure.

Finding her clitoris with his tongue, he twirled tiny
circles around it, sucking it into his mouth and working it while she murmured
incoherent words and wrapped both her legs around his shoulders.

* * * *

Goddess! Was it always like this? Gage’s head moved as he
drove her crazy with his mouth. Her muscles clenched and a surge of pleasure
rolled over her, like the waves up the beach. “Gage, oh yes, like that,
please.”

He lapped faster and toyed with her until she exploded with
the sensations, her hips bucking, and a cry piercing the air that she only
afterward realized had been her. She grabbed his hair, dug her fingers in, and clung
through the rollercoaster sensations flinging her body in all directions.

As she shuddered in the aftermath, he lifted his head and
looked at her, his lower face shiny from her juices. “Did you like that?” He
bumped her with his nose and flashed her a grin, then wiped his chin with his
discarded shirt.

Was he kidding? “Yes, I liked it.”

Shivering, she wasn’t sure what to do now, but he did. He
stood, unbuttoned his trousers, and lowered them. The bulge in his shorts
fascinated her. He grasped the waistband and pulled the boxer briefs down, his
penis springing free to curve against his abdomen. Huge.

She swallowed her unease as he knelt between her legs.
Reaching to the side, he opened the box of condoms and tore open a packet. He
rolled the thin sheath over his erection and stayed where he was a moment, a
question in his eyes.

Coral didn’t know what it was or how to answer it. She
didn’t know anything, beyond the mechanics, but she feared if she told him
that, he’d stop. So she took a guess and said, “Yes. Now.”

Gage grasped her hips and tugged her closer. She closed her
eyes and swallowed. Pressure built between her legs, and she squeezed her lids
tighter, fear struggling with arousal. Just as terror threatened to win, he
shoved inside and she was wracked with a quick, sharp pain. She bit her lip and
tasted copper.

“Are you all right?” he whispered.

She nodded, afraid to speak, and he pushed farther in,
paused and withdrew, again and again while the tension in her tummy eased and
the easy heat returned. She arched her back, meeting his thrusts, rapture
growing until once again she perched on the precipice and tumbled over, crying
out her pleasure. She buried her head in his chest and clung to his shoulders
as he slowed, not stopping, but gliding smoothly in and out.

Coral’s hands slipped down to his chest as he rocked against
her, his breath coming fast, her palms registering his heart pounding hard
under the firm muscles.

“Coral,” he said, and plunged deep one last time, shuddering
from head to foot. His arms trembled, and she reached for his neck, drawing him
against her. He covered her, his skin slick, warm.

She’d never thought it could be like this, that her body and
mind would welcome another so close, never wanting him to leave. Resting her
head on his shoulder, she traced circles on his back, and finally he rolled to
the side, removed the condom and dropped it in the little wastebasket by the
bed, then gathered her to him, spooning her. His breaths slowed, and his arm
over her breasts relaxed.